Category Archives: Places to ride

Our Swinley “Best Bits” ride is very popular, as it not only takes the best of Blue and Red regular trails, but some great bits off the regular trails (with some nice drops and roots) as well. But there’s loads more good stuff in the forest, off the (ginger) trail and so we’ve expanded it to include 3 more sections 🙂

The Peak District is a stunning place, with some outstanding geology (like the rock face at Stanage Edge) and beautiful reservoirs such as Ladybower, Derwent and Langsett.

There is masses of riding in the Peak District itself, but there are also some brilliant trails around the city crafted by Ride Sheffield and Bike Track at Grenoside, Parkwood Springs and the latest, Lady Cannings.

Pedalabikeaway in the Cannop Valley of the Forest of Dean has been a fantastic mountain biking and family cycling venue for decades, but after visiting it this weekend, I realised it has become so much more, it’s on a different level to other “trail centres” and is probably the model for others to aspire to.Continue reading Is Pedalabikeaway the model trail centre?→

This the first stop on Mandy’s “Get (Back) Into Mountain Biking” series, going to Ashton Court in Bristol.

Ashton Court is home to the Nova Trail, a purpose built blue-graded trail that winds it’s way around the estate. At only 4 miles long and with only short sections of climbing it’s the perfect place to try a proper mountain bike trail. It’s recently undergone renovation and everything on the blue is rollable, there are some sections of red graded and more technical trail for those wanting to improve their skills but for those new to mountain biking or a bit nervous about getting out on the trails this an excellent place to begin.

We’ll meet by the cafe/toilets for a 10:30am start and we’ll spend the morning on the Nova Trail. We’ll stop and session bits if people want to and Adrian will be on hand to offer coaching.

After a break for lunch we can either pop over to the 2 mile long blue graded Yer Tiz trail just over the road in Leigh Woods (which also has a progressive skills loop) or head back on to the Nova Trail to perfect our skills.

There is more than one car park at Ashton Court, please make sure you head for the car park at Pedal Progression BS8 3PX, it’s through the stone archway just after the Clifton Suspension bridge. Parking costs £1.20 for the day.

The Peak District is simple awesome for mountain biking – stunning scenery and brilliant riding. I’ve done lots of riding up there and am putting together some of the best in one long weekend.

We will be based in the Hope Valley, which has a great selection of campsites, B&B accommodation, cafes and bike shops. Personally I’ll be camping and will make a recommendation for a campsite after sampling a few, but there are plenty of great B&Bs for anyone that doesn’t like camping.

For the riding, we have 3 days: A scenic starter, along the Monsal Trail. Starting at Bakewell Station up to Blackwell Mill and back. This is a former railway line that has been converted into a bridleway, using all the old features, including a number of viaducts and 4 tunnels through the Peaks. This gives us the chance to soak in the gorgeous scenery along the route, as well as a stop to enjoy them with a drink.

Day 2 is an epic XC ride starting in Hope and heading over Mam Tor out towards Derwent Water and back. The views on this route are even more stunning than the previous day, but the riding will be amazing too, with some epic descents – this one isn’t flat! 😉 We will be doing 25-30km with 1200-1500ft of climbing (depending on the weather), but the pace will be relaxed.

The final day will be a trip to the brilliant (but short) Lady Cannings trails, which we will use to end a 10km loop of the local Blacca Moor, which is another Peaks “must do”. That should see us finish at lunchtime, on the Bank Holiday Monday.

Although we go south of Swindon lots, we’ve not yet done a trip to the north, so lets change that!

Starting in the village of Duntisbourne Abbots, just north of Cirencester, we will do a 21km lap of some fantastic scenery and riding. This is one of my scenic series of rides, so the views are driving the route, but there will be some great descents as well.

Although it’s relatively short, some of the climbs are on the steep side (but total climbing for the ride is still only around 500m), so we will be taking our time on the ups and I will incorporate at least 1 pub stop around lunch time – potentially more if it’s a nice hot day 🙂

The exact start point in the village will be posted nearer the time, but it’s only half an hour from Swindon and there will be some lifts available for anyone that needs one – please email adrian@swindonmtbenthusiasts.co.uk if you think you will need one.

Helmets are compulsory as always and although we will stop for lunch, please bring enough water and food for the ride, as we’ll be deep in the country side between the villages.

We would like to invite everyone and their families to celebrate the start of the summer.

We will meet at the children’s play area at 11am, find a good picnic spot nearby and enjoy some family time, playing games such as rounders, football, frisbee and anything else we can find in the shed!!!! We will be close to the play area, cafe, toilets and most importantly the ice cream parlour!!!

Bringing bikes is optional. We will be there to take small groups around the outside of the park, if required.

Most importantly we want everyone to come together to have some family fun. Don’t forget to bring a picnic and a picnic blanket and/or chairs to sit on.

This year’s ladies away trip sees us heading to Exmoor for a fun weekend of fantastic views, great riding and bags of fun!

We will be based in the town of Porlock, near Minehead and we will head down there after work on the Friday, where most of us will be setting up camp at Sparkhayes campsite (details further down). For those that don’t wish to camp, there are a variety of B&Bs and pubs to stay in – comment below if you want that option and I can suggest some places for you.

Friday night we will be getting settled in and have a few welcome drinks in one of the excellent local pubs.

Saturday is the big ride – our Seaside big one! Don’t worry, it’s not huge, 28km in fact, but with a fair bit of climbing that will gives us some amazing views of the sea and surrounding hills. We head out up Bossington Hill, which you can see from the campsite, before taking the ridge to Bratton. The return takes us via Selworth Combe, after which there will be an opportunity to visit the fantastic tea rooms at Horner and we will finish at Porlock Weir for a drink by the seaside.

Sunday we have two shorter rides on offer. The first is our Dunkery Dabble. Just under 10km, it does have a couple of steep bits in it, but we will take these at a gentle pace. The rewards though are some amazing views back towards the sea and some really fun descents in an idillic setting, complete with optional water crossings!

After this ride we will stop at the Horner tea rooms for a spot of lunch. If anyone needs to head back early, they can at this point, or stay on for the afternoon ride. This will be a quick 15km route from Horner out to the woods of Wootton Common and back. The way out and back are relatively flat, with the bulk of the climb at Wootton Common itself – a great way to finish a great weekend of riding.

All of these rides will be rides will be led by myself, supported by other ride leaders from the club, who are also first aid trained.

We did the MTB-Marathon in Hope last year and loved it. The whole series are brilliant events, incredibly well organised and supported with fabulous routes too. And free camping as well! So we’re going to do this excellent final round in the amazing Peak District in 2019. Although the main event is on the Sunday, there are also a Ladies Ride on the Saturday morning and a night marathon on the Saturday night, which has a choice of distances and light hire available from Exposure Lights. On the Sunday 3 distances are available – Mini (25km), Half (45km) and Full (65km!). Bear in mind it’s in the Peak District, and the hills are big too, as well as the distance! We’ve got members booked on the Half, but all routes start out together.